Witchcraft, History and Horror: OCTC Presents 2026 Salem Witch Trials Event Series
Sept. 17-Dec. 1, 2026; Event Series Beginning Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026
Owensboro, KY (09/28/2026) — Owensboro Community & Technical College (OCTC) will bring history, scholarship, storytelling and horror together this fall with its 2026 Salem Witch Trials event series, featuring a student research exhibition and a slate of free public programs exploring the events of 1692 and the enduring fascination with witchcraft and the Salem Witch Trials.
The series will run from Sept. 17 through Dec. 1, with the Salem Witch Trials Student Research Exhibition on display in the Acorn Theatre in OCTC's Humanities Building. The college will host presentations, movie nights, a guest appearance by the host of The Salem Witch Trials Podcast, a student panel and podcast recording, and a cat adoption event.
The 2026 series builds on OCTC's previous Salem Witch Trials programming while expanding opportunities for students and community members to engage with the subject from historical, cultural and contemporary perspectives.
"The Salem Witch Trials remain an endlessly fascinating lens for examining history, culture and human behavior," said Matt Alschbach, OCTC history professor. "This year's programming gives us an opportunity to look at Salem from a variety of perspectives-from the religious and cultural context of the trials to the ways witchcraft and witchmania have continued to influence American culture. We're also excited to bring Greg Houle to campus and give our students the opportunity to engage directly with someone whose own family history is connected to the Salem witch crisis of 1692."
Salem Witch Trials Student Research Exhibition
The Salem Witch Trials Student Research Exhibition will be on display Sept. 17-Dec. 1 in the Acorn Theatre, Humanities Building, on OCTC's Main Campus.
The exhibition features research conducted by OCTC students examining the people, events, beliefs and legacy surrounding the Salem Witch Trials.
The exhibition is free and open to the public Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
2026 Event Schedule
- Wednesday, Oct. 7 | 11 a.m.-12:15 p.m. | Blandford Lecture Hall, Humanities Building, Main Campus"Puritanism & the Salem Witch Trials"OCTC's Dr. Chris Cummins will examine the role of Puritanism and its religious and cultural context in the Salem Witch Trials.
- Wednesday, Oct. 7 | 4:30-7 p.m. | Blandford Lecture Hall, Humanities Building, Main CampusOCTC Horror Club Movie NightThe OCTC Horror Club will host a special movie screening as part of the Salem Witch Trials series. The film is rated R; viewer discretion is advised.
- Monday, Oct. 19 | 6:30 p.m. | Blandford Lecture Hall, Humanities Building, Main CampusAn Evening with Greg Houle: "Accusers in the Family: A Personal Journey into the Salem Witch Trials and the Legacy of 1692"OCTC will welcome Greg Houle, author, storyteller and creator of The Salem Witch Trials Podcast. Houle is a direct descendant of Ann Putnam Jr., one of the most prolific accusers during the 1692 Salem witch trials. In his presentation, Houle will combine his personal family history with historical research to explore the Salem witch crisis and its legacy. Houle's debut novel, The Putnams of Salem: A Novel of Power and Betrayal During the Salem Witch Trials, was published in 2024. His podcast examines the people, events, myths and lasting legacy of the Salem witch crisis.
- Tuesday, Oct. 20 | 12:30-1:45 p.m. | Blandford Lecture Hall, Humanities Building, Main CampusPanel Discussion & Podcast Recording with Greg Houle, Featuring OCTC StudentsHoule will join OCTC students for a special panel discussion and podcast recording exploring the Salem Witch Trials and their continuing historical and cultural significance.
- Tuesday, Oct. 27 | 11 a.m.-12:15 p.m. | Blandford Lecture Hall, Humanities Building, Main Campus"The Satanic Panic: How Witchmania Persists in American Culture"OCTC history professor Matt Alschbach will examine the persistence of witchcraft-related fears in American culture, connecting the Salem Witch Trials to later periods of American history and the phenomenon known as the Satanic Panic.
- Wednesday, Oct. 28 | 4:30-7 p.m. | Blandford Lecture Hall, Humanities Building, Main CampusOCTC Horror Club Movie NightThe OCTC Horror Club will host another special movie screening as part of the Salem Witch Trials series. The film is rated R; viewer discretion is advised.
- Thursday, Oct. 29 | 10 a.m.-1 p.m. | Blandford Lecture Hall, Humanities Building, Main CampusCat Adoption EventOCTC will partner with It Takes A Village No-Kill Animal Shelter for a cat adoption event, bringing adoptable cats to campus and providing community members an opportunity to learn more about animal adoption.
Free and Open to the Public
All events in the series are free and open to the public and will take place in Blandford Lecture Hall in the Humanities Building on OCTC's Main Campus, unless otherwise noted. The student research exhibition will be located in the Acorn Theatre, also located in the Humanities Building.
The series offers opportunities for audiences to engage with the Salem Witch Trials beyond the familiar Halloween imagery, examining the historical circumstances, religious beliefs, cultural fears and human stories that surrounded the events of 1692-and the ways in which the legacy of the witch crisis in New England continue to resonate today.
For more information, contact Matt Alschbach at matt.alschbach@kctcs.edu.
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Owensboro Community & Technical College is one of the sixteen community and technical colleges that make up the Kentucky Community & Technical College System. OCTC serves the KY counties of Daviess, Hancock, Ohio and McLean. OCTC has three campuses in Daviess County and a Center and Annex in Hancock County. OCTC strives to serve the communities in the service area by providing associate degree education for transfer, state of the art technical education for students focusing on entering the workforce, customized business and industry solutions through the Workforce Solutions division, and adult education and business and industry testing through the SkillTrain unit.
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The Kentucky Community and Technical College System is the Commonwealth's largest postsecondary institution with 16 colleges and more than 70 campuses. We also are Kentucky's largest provider of workforce training and online education. Through partnerships with business and industry, we align our programs to meet the needs of local employers. We help students fulfill their dreams of creating a better life through programs that lead directly to jobs or help them transfer to one of our four-year partners.
Connect with OCTC: Owensboro.kctcs | Facebook.com/owensboroctc | Twitter@OCTC_Tweets | Instagram OwensboroCTC
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